Applicants claim priority under 35 U.S.C. xc2xa7119 of German Application No. 199 49 995.0 filed Oct. 15, 1999. Applicants also claim priority under 35 U.S.C. xc2xa7120 of PCT/DE00/03526 filed Oct. 6, 2000. The international application under PCT article 21(2) was not published in English.
The invention relates to a pneumatic suspension system (1) as defined in the introductory part of patent claim 1.
A pneumatic suspension system according to the basic type as specified in said part of the claim, comprising a pneumatic suspension cover, a pneumatic suspension piston and a pneumatic suspension bellows, as the important components of the pneumatic suspension module, is described, for example in the published patent documents DE-C-195 08 980; DE-A-197 53 637; and DE-A-198 26 480. Such a pneumatic suspension system makes use of a vibration damper (shock absorber) that is in contact with a tie-up connecting it to the chassis.
The pneumatic suspension bellows, which is made of elastomer material and capable of rolling off on the roll-off surface of the pneumatic suspension piston with formation of a pneumatic suspension loop, is in most cases provided with an embedded reinforcement in the form of an axial bellows (DE-A-36 43 073) or a cross-layered bellows (DE-A-29 04 522), whereby an outer guide is preferably present when an axial bellows is employed.
Now, the problem within the framework of an advanced development of the invention is to provide a pneumatic suspension system in which the pneumatic suspension bellows is tied to the pneumatic spring over, and to make provision that three-dimensional movements of the site in which the pneumatic spring module is tied to the chassis, are made possible without the occurrence of any resetting moments.
Said problem is solved according to the characterizing part of claim 1 in that an articulated component is mounted within the closer proximity of the zone where the pneumatic spring bellows is tied to the pneumatic suspension bellows said component allowing pivotal displacements specifically with formation of a second pneumatic suspension loop substantially extending in the radial direction.
Useful variations of the invention are specified in claims 2 to 23.